1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a half-fitting prevention connector in which a half-fitted condition of two connectors is prevented.
The present application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. Hei. 11-169932, which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
Usually, various electronic equipments are mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile, and therefore, naturally, various types of female and male connectors are provided at connection ends of various kinds of wires forming wire harnesses or the like.
Various half-fitting prevention connectors, capable of detecting a half-fitted condition of the female and male connectors, have been used, and such half-fitting prevention connectors are disclosed, for example, in Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Publication Nos. Hei. 5-53157 and Hei. 5-81967, and Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei. 9-55261.
For example, a completely-fitting connector, disclosed in Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Publication No. Hei. 5-53157, comprises a plate, slidable in connector fitting and disengaging directions, and springs (torsion springs) urging this plate in the disengaging direction. During the fitting connection between the two connectors, the plate is abutted against an abutment portion of a lock lever of the mating connector, and if the fitting operation is stopped in this half-fitted condition, the connector and the mating connector are moved away from each other by the resilient force of the springs.
In a half-fitting prevention connector disclosed in Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Publication No. Hei. 5-81967, a movable cover for parallel movement in a fitting direction is mounted on an outer periphery of a second housing in a pair of connectors (to be fittingly connected together) through springs (compression springs) urging the movable cover in the fitting direction. With this construction, during a fitting operation, the movable cover normally urges a first housing in a disengaging direction.
In a connector disclosed in Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei. 9-55261, return springs (zigzag springs) are mounted in one connector housing, and extend in a direction of insertion of the other connector housing. Elastic arms are formed integrally on the other connector housing so as to face the return springs, respectively. With this construction, during a fitting operation, the reaction force of the return springs produce a force tending to return the other connector housing.
Each of the above half-fitting prevention connectors comprises the pair of connector housings, and the spring members for producing the reaction force. During the fitting operation, the pushing force is produced by the reaction force of the spring members, and therefore if the connector fitting operation is finished in a half-fitted condition of the connectors, the two connectors in this half-fitted condition are disengaged from each other by the reaction force of the spring members, so that the two connectors are prevented from being kept in a half-fitted condition.
In the above half-fitting prevention connectors, however, even when the pair of connectors are incompletely fitted together, pin contacts in one of the two connector housings are fitted respectively in socket contacts in the other connector housing.
Therefore, the spring members, which serve to disengage the two connectors from each other in a half-fitted condition of the connectors, need to produce the sufficient reaction force to disengage the pin contacts from the socket contacts, and therefore there has been encountered a problem that a large operating force is required for the connector fitting operation.
And besides, each of the above half-fitting prevention connectors requires the spring members, and a movable member, such as a slider, for canceling the reaction force of the spring members, and therefore the number of the component parts increases, and also the number of assembling steps increases. This has invited a problem in that the production cost increases.